Huyze Herkert, morning room: wall sconces and changing my mind on the wallpaper

In July, I wrote about my struggle to find the right wall covering for my morning room. I changed my mind several times. The parrot wallpaper I had originally planned was eventually replaced by plain green wallpaper. I thought I was finally done with it. Well, not quite!

Betsy (https://aboutmydollhouses.blogspot.com/) encouraged me to give the parrot wallpaper another chance. Just to be clear, I’m talking about this wallpaper:

I’m glad she did! Although I have to admit, it took me a while to take her advice on board. The turning point came when I put everything I had collected so far for the morning room into the room and added the wall sconces. It felt like a collection of unrelated elements. There was no sense of unity. And everything pink felt out of place. (Sigh.) Well… understandably, since the parrot wallpaper had been the starting point for all the choices I had already made: the bird theme, the pink fireplace, the accessories I had bought or made…

Okay, let’s take a step back: I mentioned wall sconces.

Months ago, when I was planning the lighting for the entire house, I decided that the morning room needed parrot-shaped wall sconces. These aren’t part of the standard dollhouse lighting range. However, I found a file online that was suitable for a 3D printer. And my brother has one! So he kindly printed them for me.

I primed them with acrylic ink. Then I painted them with acrylic paint. I spent a long time wavering between plain gold and something more colourful, and eventually chose the latter. I added a gold wall ornament and tested the lighting.

Next, I carved channels for the wiring into the MDF floor of my morning room. I used gouges designed for lino cutting, which I still had from my teenage years at art school. Carving the channels this way turned out to be surprisingly easy!

But once the wall sconces were installed, disappointment set in. Should I have gone for plain gold after all? Had the whole parrot-sconce idea been a mistake? Why did it feel so wrong?

And so we return to the turning point I mentioned earlier: the parrot wallpaper made its comeback. And suddenly, everything felt more cohesive! All that time and effort, only to end up back at the original plan for the walls... (Double sigh…)

Since I was making bold choices now, I decided the ceiling could use a little more colour, too. So I added a print there as well (Lower George St Quartz by Little Greene), along with some gold Dresden paper trim and a ceiling rose that I gave some gold accents.

the ceiling before

And this is what the morning room looks like now:


There will be cornices along the ceiling, but I can only install those once I’ve routed the lighting cables from the room below (which is the dining room) across the floor. Until then, everything needs to remain removable.

The lesson learned from all this? Stick to the original plan! 😊

And a heartfelt thank-you to Betsy!





Reacties

  1. SharonLarkin20 september 2026 om 15:59

    The room is very pretty ~ I particularly love the parrot wall lights :)

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  2. Daydreamer20 september 2026 om 21:28

    Hello Sofie! You are very Welcome! Lol! I am Not disappointed!!! Those parrot sconces are "to die for" to use an outdated expression! I Love them! They are so original, but so so Victorian in their ethos! And the "augmented" ceiling designs are just what the Doctor ordered! I am so glad you kept working on it and didn't throw the parrot paper away! Now the room has a harmonious "togetherness"... yes, it is busier in a way, but it is softer too and feminine and "lighter" in feeling! Your original design was spot on!!! I Love the way the painting over the desk "plays" with the (supposedly) garish pink marble fireplace... they love each other! Lol! And the parrot carpet no longer feels lonely! :):) I really Really love how this is going! The dollhouse takes enter stage but does not overwhelm the other pieces! Well done! I am giving you a standing ovation! :):)
    And on another topic.... years and Years ago... (1977 to be precise) my first husband and I came to Belgium to visit his paternal relatives (family name "deBethune") in Louvain la Neuve which was just being built. We toured Bruges, Ghent, Brussels and Waterloo and and then traveled on to cousins in Luxembourg and Switzerland and France... it was a fabulous visit of many weeks and much exploration of Castles and Old Buildings everywhere we went. His Uncle was a professor at Louvain la Neuve and was involved in the whole split of the University... they were French speaking (descended from the Counts of Bethune no less) so we got to see the nascent New Town first hand. It was interesting to me, my Daddy being an Architect... all things building design had rubbed off on me! That you live in Leuven made me look this up to see if I was correct that it was the same as the "Old" University town! :):) I have been a "Medievalist" all my life... taught myself calligraphy long before it was fashionable... prefer to paint tiny rather than big and modern.... I would live over there if I could... but instead I build myself a Dollhouse Castle! :):):)

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  3. Daydreamer20 september 2026 om 21:35

    And I have to add... Those parrot sconces..... it looks as though the parrots flew out of the painting!!!! What a Wonderful playful design element that is!!! :):):)

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